The Batman (2008 film)
The Batman is an upcoming 2016 American superhero film directed by Robert Bussing-Jones, who co-wrote the screenplay and story with Nathan Blake. Based on the DC Comics character Batman, the film is the first installment in a planned trilogy which will reportedly be connected to the upcoming Justice League project, which will also be directed by Robert Bussing-Jones. The film stars Jon Hamm, Guy Pearce, Brooke Burns, Christopher Plummer, Bryan Cranston, Adam Baldwin, Danny John-Jules and Michael C. Hall. The film reboots the Batman film series for the second time and tells the origin story of the character while drawing some elements from various Batman publications and storylines such as Year One, Prey, Gotham Central and Turning Points. The reboot was initially planned before the final installment of Christopher Nolan's Batman ''trilogy, ''The Dark Knight Rises, was even finished. Nolan stated that he would not be directing the reboot, but he would stay on as producer along with Emma Thomas. Nolan later redacted this statement in August 2013, when the reboot was still in the pre-production stage. Robert Bussing-Jones was later attached to the reboot as director and writer for both the film's script and screenplay along with fellow director Nathan Blake. The Batman garnered very positive reviews and was financially successful, grossing over $86 million on its opening weekend and eventually $475 million worldwide. The film opened on August 3, 2016, in the United States and Canada in 4,423 theaters. Film review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gave The Batman a 92% approval rating, with top critics praising the film's story and faithfulness to the comics while also lauding Jon Hamm's performance as Bruce Wayne. The film is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of action violence, language and some disturbing thematic material. Plot 'Prologue' As a child, Bruce Wayne and his best friend Thomas "Tommy" Elliot meet Roman Sionis, the prodigal son of two lavish, yet brash socialites, who insist that Roman befriend the two. The three eventually form a mutual friendship that lasts until rifts begin to develop. Tommy's father beats him, and his frail mother teaches him Aristotle so he can be passive with his father, which barely works. Filled with spite and desire for wealth, Tommy cuts the brakes on his parents' car, causing them to crash. Tommy's father dies, but the quick actions of Bruce's father, Dr. Thomas Wayne, saves the life of Tommy's mother, which angers him greatly. Later at a summer camp with Bruce, Tommy's rage is displayed when he beats up another boy. This action leads to Tommy being put in a psych ward for several weeks. During this time, Bruce decides to end his friendship with Tommy and sever all ties with him. About a year later, Bruce and his parents go to watch a play at the Monarch Theatre in the heart of Gotham City. When the play ends, Bruce and his parents exit into an alley known locally as Park Row, where they are confronted by a mugger who tries to take Martha's pearl necklace. Thomas interferes, but he is shot along with Martha. The two die, and the mugger panics, leaving Bruce with his dead parents. Bruce is then put in the care of his parents' loyal butler, Alfred Pennyworth. 'Training and Ascension' At age fourteen, Bruce made it a primary objective to rid Gotham of the evil that claimed his parent's lives. Bruce spent his youth scouring the world, training himself to physical and mental perfection. Attending high-class universities across Europe, Bruce was able to acquire certain attributes such as chemistry, criminology and forensics. Bruce then traveled to Asia, where he spent his time honing his martial arts, stealth, manhunting and reconnaissance skills. Confirming that he has learned all he can, Bruce returns to Gotham City, where he finds that crime has gotten worse, and that it is slowly corrupting the populace, including the police department. Bruce then discovers through the Gotham Gazette that Joe Chill, the mugger who killed his parents, will be released from Blackgate Prison on parole the next day. Buying a gun, Bruce waits by the courthouse the day after and follows Chill, intending on murdering him at his home. However, Chill's car explodes, killing him and injuring Bruce. Alfred later visits Bruce at Gotham City General Hospital after hearing about his treatment in the news and the two catch up. Meanwhile, James Gordon, a police lieutenant-detective from Chicago, transfers to Gotham City with his pregnant wife Barbara and his niece/adoptive daughter, who is also named Barbara. Moving into a house located in the southern-most section of Gotham, James anticipates his new life in the city. The next morning, Gordon heads to the G.C.P.D. building and meets his fellow detectives in the homicide division: Renee Montoya, Harvey Bullock, Crispus Allen and Sarah Essen. Gordon is eventually partnered with Harvey Bullock. 'Origins' Roman Sionis has assumed a high-ranking position in his father's company, Janus Cosmetics, and has fallen in love with Circe, his secretary. Roman's parents learn of their relationship and object to it, which enrages Roman. In the middle of the night, Roman sets fire to his parents' mansion, killing them both. As a result of this, Roman inherits the family fortune as well as Janus Cosmetics. Meanwhile, Bruce's wounds heal and he leaves Gotham Memorial with Alfred, who shows him an entrance to a cave he found during Bruce's time out of the country. In the cave, Bruce reveals his plans to become a crime-fighter to Alfred, who at first is apprehensive, but later opens up to the idea and suggests that Bruce return to the industrial game by reaffirming his position in Wayne Enterprises. Bruce later agrees and travels to Wayne Enterprises, which has significantly grown over the past 13 years. There, Bruce meets the company's current business manager Lucius Fox, who was called in to save the company after its business sector began to plummet. After Lucius became the new business manager of Wayne Enterprises, he spearheaded a large series of investments in the production of technology, gadgets and weapons, therefore improving the company's industrial status. Cast *Jon Hamm as Bruce Wayne / Batman: A billionaire philanthropist whose parents were killed in front of him by a mugger when he was just a child. After going through immense training both in and out of Gotham City, Bruce uses his industrial resources with the help of Lucius Fox to form an identity that preys on the criminal underworld by night-- the Batman. **Aaron Refvem as Bruce Wayne (age 14) *Guy Pearce as Roman Sionis / Black Mask: Once a friend of Bruce, Roman Sionis became the notorious crime lord known as Black Mask after his father's company, Janus Cosmetics, was forcefully bailed out and appointed a new board of directors by none other than Bruce himself. Black Mask serves as the main antagonist of the Batman storyline. **Max Charles as Roman Sionis (age 8) *Brooke Burns as Vicki Vale: A journalist of the Gotham Gazette ''who reports on Batman's activities and serves as Bruce's love interest. *Christopher Plummer as '''Alfred Pennyworth': One of Bruce's closest associates, Alfred Pennyworth was the loyal butler of Thomas and Martha Wayne before their deaths. Even so, Alfred stayed with Bruce throughout his childhood and later contributed to the creation of the Batman persona. *Bryan Cranston as James Gordon: A detective who tranferred from Chicago with his wife and young daughter, James Gordon witnessed first-hand the kind of corruption and criminality that plagued Gotham City. *Adam Baldwin as Floyd Lawton / Deadshot: A dangerously accurate henchman hired by Roman Sionis a.k.a. Black Mask to assassinate Bruce Wayne. Deadshot serves as the secondary antagonist of the Batman storyline. *Danny John-Jules as Lucius Fox: A mild-mannered businessman who becomes the CEO of Wayne Enterprises while Bruce is growing up. *Michael Madsen as Harvey Bullock: A dirty cop who is partnered with Gordon. *Michael C. Hall as Thomas Elliot: A world-renowned surgeon who was once Bruce Wayne's best friend as a child, Thomas "Tommy" Elliot began to loathe Bruce's life of leisure and wealth. As time went on, Elliot became more deranged, and in the end, Elliot would forge an identity for himself, an identity designed to inflict torture on the one man he hated the most: Bruce Wayne. Thomas serves as the tertiary antagonist of the Batman storyline. **Cade Owens as Thomas Elliot (age 9) **Dakota Goyo as Thomas Elliot (age 15) *Brian Cox as Gillian Loeb: The current commissioner of the Gotham City Police Department, Gillian B. Loeb is one of the many law enforcement officers under the corruption of Carmine Falcone. Gillian serves as the main antagonist of the Gordon storyline. *Stana Katic as Renee Montoya: An honest cop in the Major Crimes Unit, Renee Montoya is the only law enforcement officer other than Gordon who has come in frequent contact with Batman. *Thomas Gibson as Thomas Wayne: A gifted surgeon and philanthropist, Dr. Thomas Wayne and his wife Martha were murdered by a mugger while walking out of the Monarch Theatre in Gotham City. This unfortunate event would influence his son Bruce to become the caped crusader known as Batman. *Radha Mitchell as Martha Wayne: The beautiful wife of Dr. Thomas Wayne, Martha was killed along with her husband in an alley behind the Monarch Theatre in Gotham City while their son Bruce helplessly watched. *Mackenzie Crook as Joe Chill: A small-town thug who killed Bruce's parents. *Alan Dale as Lew Moxon: A rackateer and bank robber with ties to the mob. *Julie Bowen as Sarah Essen: One of the detectives working in the Homicide devision with Gordon. *Mark Strong as Warren White / "The Great White Shark": A crooked investor turned henchman who works for Roman Sionis. *Delroy Lindo as Hamilton Hill: The current mayor of Gotham City. *Peigi Barker as Barbara Gordon: The niece and adoptive daughter of James and Barbara Eileen-Gordon. *Jackie Earle Haley as Victor Zsasz / "The Butcher": A serial killer who works as a thug for Roman Sionis. Soundtrack The score for The Batman was composed by Vitaliy Zavadskyy and Charlie Spring, who had both been wanting to collaborate together in a motion picture. Robert Bussing-Jones invited Zavadskyy to compose The Batman's score after hearing his orchestral work in various plays across New York, saying that "his style of composing perfectly fit Batman's character." Zavadskyy agreed, but asked that fellow composer Charlie Spring would join. Hesitant at first, Bussing-Jones eventually agreed, stating that "both composers would be able to achieve the various themes in the film perfectly." Sequel Robert Bussing-Jones confirmed during the film's production that he intended to make a trilogy. When the film was released, Bussing-Jones stated that "with such a stupefying response to the reboot, there's no doubt that we'll be expanding more on the Batman mythos in the future." The sequel's title was later revealed as The Knight. Category:Movies Category:XtranormalGeek Category:PG-13